Russia celebrates as Donald Trump takes White House on Election Day

Social media began asking the question as poll watchers in the Kremlin — and presumably Russian president Vladimir Putin — took delight in Donald Trump's impressive Election Night showing.

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Putin pinged Trump a congratulatory telegram following his White House win, adding that he hopes relations between the two countries benefit as a result.

Popular Front, a political movement founded by Putin in 2011, also took note of Trump's victory and Putin's alleged hand in the election.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been outspoken in his praise for Donald Trump. (SERGEI KARPUKHIN/REUTERS)

"They say that Putin once again beat all," the group tweeted.

Trump had been widely criticized over what had appeared to be a cozy relationship with Putin and concerns that the Russian government was trying to influence the election.

Pro-Kremlin analyst Sergei Markov celebrated the Trump victory on Wednesday but denied that his country tried to swing voters thousands of miles away.

Trump has returned Putin's compliments with glowing endorsements of his own. (Corey Sipkin/New York Daily News)

However, he did tell The Guardian that "maybe we helped a bit with WikiLeaks," the Internet group that published hacked emails from Hillary Clinton's campaign manager John Podesta.

Election coverage was so intense in Russia that at least one news commentator joked that voters in Moscow were looking for places to cast ballots for Trump.

The night-and-day coverage in Russia led many to complain that the Kremlin-managed news media was devoting more attention to the American elections than it gave to a Russia's national parliamentary vote less than two months ago.

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"Correct me if I am wrong, but this has not happened for any elections in Russia," Dmitry Gudkov, an opposition politician, wrote on Facebook.

A lack of television coverage contributed in part to Gudkov's election loss.

Russian news outlets have generally treated Trump with kid gloves. Clinton, on the other hand, has a history with the Kremlin, and Russians fear she would tighten the screws.

President-elect Trump celebrates victory Tuesday night with (l. to r.) son Barron, wife Melania and daughter Ivanka at the New York HIlton. (Corey Sipkin/New York Daily News)

"Clinton will surround us with nuclear rockets," one Russian newspaper warned.

Vadim Tyulpanov, member of the Russian Senate, told Moscow's Life News that Americans were tired of overly aggressive leaders, and that a Trump victory could lead to collaboration between the former Cold War foes.

He said he was dismayed that the American elite tried to paint Trump as a puppet of Russia.

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Putin and other Kremlin officials had not-so-subtly thrown their support behind Trump. (Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)

China was watching the election closely, as well.

Commentators signaled Beijing's preference for the billionaire, saying that like Russia, China was rooting for Trump because he appears less willing to confront China's newly robust foreign

"From a comprehensive view, it would make it easier for China to cope if Trump is elected," scholar Mei Xinyu wrote in the Communist Party newspaper Global Times.

"This is because under the policy line advocated by Obama and Clinton, the political and military frictions between China and the U.S. will be more frequent."

Not all of Russia rejoiced over the prospect of a Trump presidency. Margarita Simonyan, the editor of an English-language news outlet, tweeted a simple message.